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The Florida Natural Resources Leadership Institute (NRLI) - Collaborative Solutions for Natural Resource Challenges Author: Laila Racevskis, Director of the Florida Natural Resources Leadership Institute, Gainesville, FL

N RLI was created to help rising leaders in business,

agriculture, government, academia and the

environmental community to enhance the skills

required to effectively manage conflict that arises from

natural resource issues. Each NRLI class is composed of

approximately 20 participants (“Fellows”) representing

a broad array of natural resource interests. Institute

Fellows, will become familiar with natural resource

issues and policy while learning concepts, tools and

skills that will help them play a role in shaping the

future of Florida. Institute graduates will be better able

to help the people, industries, and institutions of

Florida collaborate in achieving the often conflicting

goals of protecting the environment and the people

while fostering economic development.

Class IX of the Florida Natural Resources

Leadership Institute (NRLI) graduated on March 19th,

2010 in an evening ceremony at the Ti Amo restaurant

in downtown Gainesville, Florida. The graduates of

Class IX, as alumni of the program, joined a growing

network of natural resource professionals around the

State of Florida who have all shared the NRLI

experience of site visits, stakeholder engagement, and

a well thought out and tested curriculum in Conflict

Management and Collaborative Decision-making.

Each NRLI class participates in eight three-day

sessions; one session per month for eight months. The

first seven sessions are each based on a natural

resource issue of importance to Florida. The eighth

session is Practicum Presentation and graduation.

Applications for Class X are now being accepted.

Information about Class X, as well as about previous

NRLI classes, can be found at our website, http://

nrli.ifas.ufl.edu . We invite you to visit the NRLI

website and explore it. If you work in natural resources

in Florida, you are almost certain to find the name of

someone you know on the Alumni page. If you have

any questions about the NRLI program, contact Bruce

Delaney at 352-846-1511 or delaneyb@ufl.edu.

www.sfrc.ufl.edu/CFEOR

“I wish I had the opportunity to attend NRLI earlier in my

career as it gave me a unique statewide perspective of the

challenges facing the future protection and management of

Florida’s natural resources as we try to balance the effects of

an increasing population and unbridled development. The

program introduces you to the good, bad and the ugly of

natural resource issues facing this State and provides you

with the conflict resolution and facilitation skills necessary to

bring stakeholders together to try to reach consensus on the

issues. I believe it should be require training for not only

natural resource professionals, but policy makers, county

commissioners, elected officials and the like.”

William O. “Bill” Cleckley, Director

Division of Land Management and Acquisition

Northwest Florida Water Management District

Class IX Fellows along with some local NRLI alumni gather in Bradenton at the Beach Restaurant during Session one (Aug. 2009).

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How should the risk associated with the introduction of biological control agents be estimated?

McCoy, Earl D. and J. H. Frank. 2010. Agricultural and Forest Entomology 12:1-8.

Florida has an exceptional burden of invasive species. The history of the classical biological control of invasive arthropod pest

species in the region largely is one of inadequate pre-release testing for nontarget effects. A recent analysis indicated that a

substantial risk of non target effects may exist in Florida, although the risk appears to be confined to a relatively small group of

species within approximately ten families and documented cases of nontarget effects are rare, despite previous risky practices.

Great progress has been made recently in creating an organized framework for dealing with the uncertainty accompanying

biological control importations in Florida and elsewhere. We suggest some ways in which balancing the risks and associated

costs of releasing a biological control agent against the risks and associated costs of not releasing the agent may be improved.

Ultimately, experts will need to set some level of acceptable risk, and the 'precautionary principle' has been advanced to guide

this process. As it stands, however, the precautionary principle applied to biological control falls short as a guide because it does

not provide a prescription for action. Florida case histories clearly illustrate both the complexity and urgency related to

developing a prescription for action.

© 2009 The Royal Entomological Society. To read the full article members click here.

David Turner is a Biological

Scientist III (Area Wildlife

Biologist) at Salt Lake Wildlife

Management Area in Brevard

County on the east coast of

Florida. Salt Lake is a 7,800

acre area managed by the

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. His job

duties include upland and wetland habitat restoration and

maintenance, exotic/invasive species treatment and

eradication, protected species management and monitoring

and administration of public hunting and other recreation.

Salt Lake WMA has a limited amount of coastal type scrub

habitat that was highly overgrown when acquired. Through

aggressive mechanical, chemical and prescribed fire

treatment, Dave has brought the scrub into excellent

condition and increased the number of individuals, family

groups and occupied territories of Florida Scrub Jay. His

diligent management has transformed the previously

neglected flatwoods into shining examples of the habitat

type. David can be contacted via e-mail at

David.Turner@MyFWC.com or by cell phone at 352-427-

0890. You can also visit the FWC website at http://

w w w . m y f w c . c o m / R E C R E A T I O N /

WMASites_SaltLake_index.htm

Patrick (Pat) Minogue is Assistant

Professor of Silviculture with the

School of Forest Resources and

Conservation, housed at the North

Florida Research & Education

Center in Quincy and is also a

CFEOR affiliated faculty member.

Pat has more than 30 years experience in agricultural, forestry,

and environmental research as well as a private forestry and

environmental consultant in the southeastern and western

United States. He has been a licensed forester in Alabama and

Georgia for many years, and was instrumental in developing

herbicide technology for reforestation and improved

productivity and health of southern pine and hardwood forests.

Pat provides educational support to county extension faculty

seeking solutions to industry, private forest land owner, and

government agency problems. Pat works to develop and

promote sound forest management practices to protect and

sustain water quality, support the use of tree crops to meet

society’s energy needs and promote forest vegetation

management practices to enhance forest health, and restore

habitats. To contact Pat via email at pminogue@ufl.edu . To

learn more about Pat go to http://nfrec.ifas.ufl.edu/contact/

PatMinogue.shtml

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CFEOR Mission:

To develop and disseminate knowledge needed to conserve and

manage Florida’s forest as a healthy, working ecosystem that

provides social, ecological and economic benefits on a

sustainable basis.

CFEOR Administration

Bill Cleckley, Northwest Florida Water Management District, Steering Committee Chair

Tim Breault, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Steering Committee Vice-Chair

Newsletter Contacts

Nancy Peterson, School of Forest Resources and Conservation, CFEOR Executive Director,

njp@ufl.edu Melissa Kreye, School of Forest Resources and

Conservation, CFEOR Coordinator, mkreye@ufl.edu

Phone 352.846.0848 ∙Fax 352.846.1277∙ PO Box 110410∙ Gainesville, FL

Working Across Boundaries to Protect Ecosystems

March 23-25, 2010. A Natural Training Areas (NATA)

workshop addressing how political, social and ecological

forces can affect natural areas and innovative

management strategies. To register and more

information please visit http://nata.snre.ufl.edu/

schedule.htm

Forest Stewardship Workshop Series: Diversify Income

from Your Land March 23, 2010; 9:00 am – 3:30 pm, ET,

UF-IFAS Clay County Extension Office in Green Cove

Springs, FL. Contact the Extension Office at (904) 284-

6355 to register. Workshop Agenda: http://

w w w . s f r c . u f l . e d u / E x t e n s i o n /

florida_forestry_information/events_calendar/files/

enterprises_clay032310_agenda.pdf

Alabama Forest Owners Association, Inc Educational

Program Internet/Telephone Conference March 23,

2010; 10:00 am –10:30 am, CT, nationwide. This 30

minute telephone/Internet conference will feature state

& national experts, researchers & authors on breaking

issues, current research, can't-miss educational events,

books & publications, timber market update and more.

Listen on your phone or later on the web. Call AFOA to

register: (205) 987-8811. or go to http://www.afoa.org/

cal/cal.htm

Florida Society of American Foresters-North Woods

Work Day April 3, 2010 9:00 am-3:00 pm, ET, at Santa Fe

College, Gainesville, Fl. Review data from last year's North

Woods inventory, then participate in a prescribed burn

(weather permitting). Contact Charlie Houder at

chouder@treeware.com for more information .

Florida Chapter of The Wildlife Society Annual Spring

Conference–Longleaf Ecosystem Restoration and

Management. April 21-23, 2010. Tallahassee, FL. To learn

more and to register go to http://www.fltws.org/.

UF-IFAS Aquatic Weed Control Short Course May 3-6,

2010 at Coral Spring Marriott Hotel, Coral Springs, FL. The

Aquatic Weed Control Short Course is designed to benefit

those new to the industry and experienced professionals

seeking a comprehensive update on all things related to

aquatic weed control. For more information go to http://

www.conference.ifas.ufl.edu/aw/.